US Navy RADM Bruce McCandless: WWII Medal of Honor Recipient

Welcome back everyone! 

Before we get into today's story, I’m going to share the Medal of Honor story of US Army Air Forces 1LT Donald Pucket, which was pulled from the Duty & Valor YouTube channel.

For his selfless sacrifice in refusing to leave any of his crew behind, 1LT Donald Pucket was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. 

Now on today’s episode of Duty & Valor, you’ll hear about US Navy RADM Bruce McCandless, a man whose leadership and bravery during one of World War II's fiercest naval battles left an indelible mark on history.  His actions in the face of overwhelming odds not only saw him receive the Medal of Honor but also showcased the extraordinary courage and determination that defined the Greatest Generation.

Bruce was born to Byron and Velma McCandless in Washington DC on Aug. 12, 1911.  His father was a Rear Admiral in the Navy and was awarded the Navy Cross for his command of the destroyer USS Caldwell during fighting in WWI.  Because they were a military family, the McCandless’ moved Bruce and his sister Velma a lot.  

Bruce chose to follow in his father’s footsteps and was appointed to the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.  After graduating in 1932, he was assigned to the USS Louisville, the USS Indianapolis, and then the USS Case. 

In 1935 Bruce married Sue Bradley and would go on to have four children.  Sue, Rosemary, Bruce II, and Douglas.  Bruce II, who would go on to serve in the Navy and become an astronaut who was the first person to perform a spacewalk untethered.  

Sue’s father, US Navy Captain Willis Bradley was awarded the Medal of Honor during WWI for saving the crew of the USS Pittsburgh by extinguishing a fire that was caused by an explosion.  

Bruce went back to Annapolis and attended postgraduate school.  After completing further studies he was assigned to the USS San Francisco in Sept. 1939 and was promoted to Lieutenant the following month.

In October 1941, the USS San Francisco arrived at Pearl Harbor Hawaii for a scheduled overhaul.  When Japanese planes attacked on Dec. 7, the San Francisco had very little to defend itself.  Many of the larger guns had been removed and much of its ammunition was in storage.  Some men manned the two small machine guns, while others fired at the passing planes with small arms.  Any unusable ammunition was transferred to other ships and many of the sailors jumped onto the nearby USS New Orleans and helped man anti-aircraft batteries.

Amidst the utter destruction of the attack, the San Francisco was left undamaged.  The week after the attack, it set sail towards Wake Island.  After Wake Island fell to the Japanese, the San Francisco and Task Force 14 were diverted to Midway.  After reinforcing forces there it returned to Pearl Harbor at the end of December. 

In 1942 the San Francisco served in support of many Allied operations throughout the Pacific.  In June, McCandless was promoted to Lt CDR and was serving as the ship's communications officer.

In October, 1942, the San Francisco was part of Task Force 65 sent to the Solomon Islands to support the invasion of Guadalcanal.  The task force commander, RADM Daniel Callaghan chose the San Francisco as its flagship, as he had been its commander when the US entered WWII.

On November 12, the San Francisco was near Savo Island, just off the northern coast of Guadalcanal.  In the afternoon, a Japanese torpedo bomber dropped its torpedo but it never hit its target.  However, the crippled bomber hit the ship’s control aft and fell into the sea.  Its impact on the ship killed 24 sailors, and wounded 45 others.  It also destroyed three 20mm guns, the aft anti-aircraft director and radar.  

Just after midnight, a Japanese naval force was spotted dangerously close to their position.  As they maneuvered to intercept the Japanese vessels, the San Francisco engaged a cruiser just 3,700 yards off its starboard side.  Minutes later it then opened fire on a second ship that had moved in even closer.  In the confusion of the Naval battle raging in pitch black darkness, the San Francisco accidently targeted and fired on the light cruiser USS Atlanta.  Direct hits on the Atlanta caused significant damage and killed Admiral Norman Scott and most of the bridge crew.  The San Francisco realized the error and stopped firing, but it was too late.  The Atlanta sustained more damage from Japanese attacks and was so badly damaged that it could not be saved.  Demolition charges were placed and the ship sunk on purpose. 

At around 0200, the San Francisco was targeted by three Japanese ships, a cruiser, destroyer, and a battleship.  In the fierce engagement that followed, the San Francisco was hit multiple times, but it kept firing on the three vessels.  Many fires had broken out and the ship began taking on water. 

Lt. Commander Herbert Schonland, the damage control officer led efforts to keep the ship “afloat and right-side up” as he would later state.  With water flooding the second deck faster than they could pump it out, he made the decision to release water into the lower levels of this ship, where the larger bilge pumps could handle the amount of water pouring in.  

While Lt Commander Schonland was fighting to keep the ship afloat, the San Francisco took a direct hit to its navigation bridge.  The explosion killed the ship’s captain Cassin Young and the Task Force commander Rear Admiral Daniel Callaghan, along with other officers.  Lt Commander McCandless luckily survived, but he was badly injured and left unconscious by the blast.    

After Lt. CDR McCandless regained consciousness, he realized he was the senior officer left on the bridge, so he took the conn.  Taking the conn means being in control of the ship's movements.  Though Lt CDR Schonland was the senior officer alive, when word reached him about the fate of those on the bridge, he said that he would remain leading efforts to keep the ship afloat and that LT CDR McCandless was doing a fine job on the conn and ordered him to remain there.

LT CDR McCandless directed fire on the Japanese ships, and as he knew Admiral Callaghan’s battle plan, he also gave orders to other ships.  Those on the other ships didn’t realize the task force commander was killed as Lt CDR McCandless didn’t tell anyone over radio, fearing that the Japanese would intercept the message.  So to them,  the orders they were hearing were coming from Admiral Callaghan himself. 

LT CDR McCandless maneuvered the ship as best he could, but steering and engine controls were soon lost.  After regaining some control, a port side hit knocked out controls once again.  They were able to regain controls yet again before a direct hit on the conning tower knocked it out once more.  The ship now had no steering, power, or communications.  

The Japanese could have finished destroying the crippled ship, but they soon ceased firing and withdrew from the battle.  Once it regained power, the San Francisco had no navigation capabilities so it followed the Helena and Juneau east towards safety and eventual repairs.         

In total the San Francisco received hits of five inches or larger 45 times during the battle and the crew were forced to put out twenty two fires.  86 men were killed in the battle and another 85 wounded.  During the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal the US lost nine ships and eleven more were damaged, while the Japanese lost 26 ships, with 12 more damaged.

Once the battle was over and LT CDR McCandless was able to reflect on what had happened, he feared that he would be court martialed for not informing the other ships captains that Admiral Callaghan was killed and for continuing to give battle orders as if he were alive.  His fears were unfounded.  He was promoted to Commander and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during and immediately after the battle.  The following month, CDR McCandles stood on the deck of the San Francisco as ADM Ernest King bestowed the medal up on him. 

Though he wasn’t the only one to be presented the Medal of Honor.  The following month, President Roosevelt bestowed the medal upon LT CDR Hebert Schonland for his actions in keeping the San Francisco from sinking. 

CDR McCandless continued his service on the San Francisco until 1944, at which point he was given command of the newly commissioned USS Gregory, a Fletcher-class destroyer.  He received a Silver Star for his command of the Gregory from April 1 to April 8, 1945 while supporting the invasion of Okinawa, marked by his leadership following a Japanese kamikaze attack by four planes. 

He was a Captain when he decided to end his Navy service, but was promoted to Rear Admiral upon his retirement on September 1, 1952. 

RADM Bruce McCandless passed away on Jan. 24,1968 at the age of 56 and is buried at the US Naval Academy Cemetery.

In 1971 the US Navy commissioned the frigate USS McCandless in honor of Admiral’s Byron and Bruce McCandless.

Rear Admiral Bruce McCandless embodied the true spirit of leadership, stepping up in the face of overwhelming adversity to command his ship in some of the fiercest naval combat in WWII. His courage and determination serve as a timeless reminder that even in the darkest moments, one person’s resolve can change the course of history.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Duty & Valor. If you enjoyed this episode and our show in general, please like, follow, and share our show wherever you’re listening.  You can also support the show directly at patreon.com/dutyandvalor or by becoming a member of our Duty & Valor YouTube community. 

To read more about this week’s hero, check out the sources used in today's episode in our show notes and at dutyandvalor.com.

Remember, we release new episodes on the Duty & Valor YouTube channel on Fridays at 5 pm. On our channel, we also release daily YouTube shorts that highlight our Nation’s heroes, many of whom haven’t been featured on the show yet.

Please join us for our next episode, where we'll be sharing the inspiring story of another American hero who served with pride and lived with humility.